By Gallego H.B. No. 2730 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to authorizing the Attorney General to bring an action to 1-3 recover damages sustained, either directly, or indirectly, by 1-4 persons or governmental entities attributable to conduct declared 1-5 unlawful by the Texas Free Enterprise and Antitrust Act, and matter 1-6 related thereto. 1-7 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-8 SECTION 1. The Texas Free Enterprise and Antitrust Act, Tex. 1-9 Bus. & Comm. Code Ann. Sec. 15.21, is amended to add the following 1-10 subsection to read as follows: 1-11 (d) SUITS ON BEHALF OF INDIRECT PURCHASERS. 1-12 (1) The Attorney General may bring a civil suit to recover 1-13 damages on behalf of any person or governmental entity, including 1-14 the State of Texas and any of its political subdivisions or tax 1-15 supported institutions, whose business or property has been 1-16 injured, either directly or indirectly, by any conduct declared 1-17 unlawful in Subsection (a), (b) or (c) of Section 15.05 of this 1-18 Act, and, if successful, shall recover any actual damages sustained 1-19 by such person or governmental entity. 1-20 (2) In any action under this section, any defendant shall be 1-21 entitled to prove as a partial or complete defense to a claim for 1-22 damages that the illegal overcharge has been passed on to others 1-23 who are themselves entitled to recover so as to avoid duplication 2-1 of recovery of damages. 2-2 (3) In any case in which claims are asserted by both direct 2-3 purchasers and the Attorney General on behalf of indirect 2-4 purchasers, the court shall take all actions necessary to avoid 2-5 multiplicity of suits and duplication of damages, including the 2-6 consolidation and/or transfer of and and/or all actions relating to 2-7 the same injury. 2-8 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1993. 2-9 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 2-10 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 2-11 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 2-12 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 2-13 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.